Believe
by Sapphire1112
Summary: A different take on after series 20. I do not own the characters.
1. Chapter 1

"No, wait. Wait, wait, wait. Wait, the air. The air shouldn't have... Nikki, I didn't tell you..."

He'd gone. That had been their last goodbye and now she'd do anything to hear his voice again, see him. But it wasn't her choice.

She expected to see her mum, hear her, but instead she heard Jack's voice again. She remembered his words. She knew what he was going to say.

"Nikki, I didn't tell you this, but the air, you should have..."

And that was that. She had asked his permission to let her go, let her die and he had refused to give it. All thoughts of imminent death disappeared. She had air Jack had given her a lifeline and now she was going to make sure she got back to him.


	2. Chapter 2

The phone had cut out.

Jack had briefly dropped to his knees with despair. Devastation that she had gone.

Briefly.

He was usually good at being objective, although not where Nikki was concerned, but having remembered the conversation he'd started before her phone had died, he had forced himself to be objective and was back on his feet. He wasn't giving up. Never. Even if he had to pray for a miracle.

Now, he walked away from the happy reunion, full of determination.

"Jack?" Gustavo ran after him.

"I'm going to find Nikki." Jack answered, without looking back.

"But..." Gustavo stated.

Jack still didn't stop or look round. "She still had air. She was still alive when her phone cut out. She shouldn't have still been breathing, but she was. I've got time and I'm damn well gonna find her." He shouted as he started running towards the trucks they had come in.

"ok, let's go then." Gustavo said arriving next to Jack and opening the door. Ernesto, Luisa and her father all piled in the back, much to Jacks astonishment - he hadn't noticed they were following him.


	3. Chapter 3

Nikki slowly became aware of being cold and wet. She was in water and she could taste salt. Oh, yeah, she was in the sea.

She opened her eyes and turned over. The sun blazed down on her face. She turned back over again.

Slowly, getting to her feet, she looked up to see where she had fallen from. She been in the burial mounds. Well, that made sense now, she supposed, Jack had said that Eva had taken her to save Ernesto and Ernesto was excavating the mounds.

Jack!

Nikki froze. What had she done to him? He'd sounded so despondent, so disbelieving when he'd realised that she'd tricked him. He probably thought she was dead now. She pictured him, bent over, his head in his hands. His devastated face. It was an _unbearable_ thought.

But maybe he still hoped - after all it was him who had pointed out she still had air. He'd given her the confidence to break out of that horrendous place - not that he knew that, but he knew she still had air and she hoped that was enough to stop him giving up hope. She made her way along the beach.

She had to get back to him.


	4. Chapter 4

Jack pored over the maps with Gustavo, Ernesto, Luisa, her father and Thomas, who had arrived at the compound just before they had returned from the scrap-yard.

On their return, his face had dropped upon realising that Nikki was not with them "She's still alive, we still have time" Jack had said, sounding so desperate that Thomas had not even thought to ask the younger man how he knew she was still alive.

Now they were all poring over the maps again, with no more ideas about where she was than before their visit to the scrap yard. Thomas rubbed his hand over his hot face, "We have no clue _where_ she is or what _state_ she's in."

"We know she's buried, but when I last spoke to her, she still had air." Jack muttered, still examining the map.

Silence.

Jack looked up to see Thomas's shocked face staring at him Shit. He'd forgotten that Thomas didn't know about the phone."What do you mean 'when you last _spoke_ to her'?!" Thomas inquired, loudly.

Jack sighed. He couldn't waste time discussing this. He _had_ to find Nikki. He spoke as quickly as he could. "Eva gave her a phone and sent me the number. It wouldn't track- I tried But I've been speaking to her on it, trying to find her, trying to keep her calm. She's in a wooden box in the earth somewhere. She's been so scared in there. " It was all pouring out. He had to stop, he had to find her.

"Jack" Thomas didn't know what else to say.

"I'm sorry Thomas, I thought the Cartel had her and I was warned on the phone that she would die if I told anyone"

Thomas nodded "That's how you found the scrap-yard - she told you about the Tetracynadine. on the phone."

Jack slammed his hand down on the table, making everyone jump at his sudden burst of anger. "She _deliberately_ tricked me into saving everyone else _instead_ of her." He yelled. Thomas winced at the volume. They heard a car passing by outside as Jack continued in a slightly quieter tone "But Thomas, her phone battery died when we were at the scrap-yard and now..." He raised his voice again in desperation, "I've got _no_ way of contacting her!"

A weak voice spoke causing him to spin around. "Jack?"


	5. Chapter 5

Jack darted around the table to the doorway and scooped her into his arms, desperate to feel the warmth of her body to confirm that it wasn't his imagination.

Nikki sobbed as Jack lifted her off the floor and spun her around. She had missed everything about him. His warmth, his handsome face , especially his eyes and his muscular frame. She'd missed his stubbornness - a trait she could more than match and his unwavering need to protect her. His voice had kept her going, but it wasn't the same as being with him. After the phone had cut out, it had been the sound of his voice in her mind that had persuaded her to force her way out - his voice and the thought of seeing him again. "I missed you _so_ much" She whispered, as her sobs subsided.

"I missed you more than you know, love." he whispered back, trying to control his own sobbing. He gently placed her down, holding her at arm's-length so he could look at her. He was _not_ letting go of her. His eyes moved down, taking her in. There was mud in her hair, a cut on her face and her clothes were muddy and damp. She looked tired. "How did you get here?" he murmured.

"I walked a bit, then a car stopped for me. They gave me water. They wanted to take me to the hospital but I asked to come here. I _had_ to find you" She answered, shuffling slightly in her discomfort. Her feet were really aching. "In case you thought I was dead." she added.

Jack was suddenly conscious of her feet, blistered and bleeding. "Shit, Nikki, your feet." He said, picking her up again and carrying to a nearby chair, where upon he crouched in front of her and examined them. It was then that Nikki noticed that they weren't alone in the room. When she arrived at the compound, she only had eyes for Jack.

They were all watching her intently. "Thomas," She held her arms out and he accepted them.

"I'm so glad you're back " He squeezed her shoulders. "I'll go and call Clarissa."

"Tell her I'll speak to her later" She called after him, he nodded. "Oh and Thomas, do me a favour and arrange the flight home, please"

Jack looked up at her in relief. "That's the most _sensible_ thing you've said since we got here." Luisa appeared next to Nikki and pushed a steaming cup of tea in her hand. Nikki hugged her.

"I'm so glad you're ok too, Luisa"

"I wouldn't be if it wasn't for you Nikki." She glanced down at the tired man, still carefully tending to Nikki's sore feet. "You know, you nearly _killed_ Jack, sending him to save us instead of you."

"I know" Nikki answered softly, looking down at Jack and reaching for his shoulder with her free hand. She leaned forward and placed a gentle kiss on his forehead. He looked up at her. "I know you would have never given up looking for me." She paused and then carried on. "What you said to me before the phone died, that gave me the strength to force my way out." she said simply.

Jack got up off the floor and sat on the chair next to her. She carried on. "You saved me Jack. You told me I would be back in London by the weekend - it's gonna rain, remember and I believed you."

Jack looked down at her hand on his. She moved it and gently tipped his head to look at her.

Putting her hand on the side of his face, she whispered softly "I believed in you and you were right."


End file.
